public-service · state vs federal minimum wage
State Minimum Wage vs. Federal FLSA: What the Law Says
The Fair Labor Standards Act's own text says which minimum wage or child-labor rule applies when a state or city sets a higher standard than federal law.
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Updated: Sources: 2
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What matters now
- A stricter state or local minimum wage, workweek, or child-labor law overrides the federal FLSA floor.
- 29 U.S.C. Section 218 says federal law never excuses violating a higher state minimum wage or shorter maximum workweek.
- The same override rule applies to child-labor standards, not just wages and hours.
- Section 218's operative text is unchanged between the 2023 and 2024 U.S. Code editions.
- This provision does not state any specific state or city's minimum wage or coverage rules.
When a state or city sets a minimum wage, maximum workweek, or child-labor standard that is stricter than the federal Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA), the higher standard applies. This is not an inference from general federalism principles — it is written directly into the federal statute itself, at 29 U.S.C. §218, the FLSA’s own “Relation to other laws” section (“Sec. 218 - Relation to other laws,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm).
This original record-reading guide is a general reading aid, not cited evidence. It does not depict a source record; the article text and source links provide the facts.
Key points
- Federal law explicitly yields to a stricter state or local minimum wage or workweek rule; the FLSA does not excuse noncompliance with either (“United States Code, 2024 Edition,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm).
- The same layering rule covers child-labor standards, not just wages and hours (“Title 29 - LABOR,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm).
- This provision sits in the FLSA itself, in “CHAPTER 8 - FAIR LABOR STANDARDS” (https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm), meaning the deference to stricter state and local law is a built-in feature of the federal statute, not a court-made add-on.
- The operative text has amendment markers from 1938, 1966, and 1967, and that same text is confirmed current in both the 2024 and 2023 U.S. Code editions (“United States Code, 2023 Edition,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title29/html/USCODE-2023-title29-chap8-sec218.htm).
Wage and hour rules
The core rule is stated in a single sentence of Section 218: “No provision of this chapter or of any order thereunder shall excuse noncompliance with any Federal or State law or municipal ordinance establishing a minimum wage higher than the minimum wage established under this chapter or a maximum work week lower than the maximum workweek established under this chapter” (“Sec. 218 - Relation to other laws,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm).
In plain terms, the FLSA sets a floor, not a ceiling. Compliance with the federal minimum wage or the federal maximum-workweek rule does not excuse an employer from also complying with a stricter state law or municipal ordinance.
Child-labor rules
The same section extends this floor logic to child-labor rules: “no provision of this chapter relating to the employment of child labor shall justify noncompliance with any Federal or State law or municipal ordinance establishing a higher standard” (“Sec. 218 - Relation to other laws,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm). A state or local child-labor standard that is more protective than the federal one still has to be followed.
Where this text comes from
Section 218 is not a recent addition. Its amendment history, printed directly beneath the statutory text, traces back to the FLSA’s original 1938 enactment and two later amendments: “(June 25, 1938, ch. 676, §18, 52 Stat. 1069; Pub. L. 89–601, title III, §306, Sept. 23, 1966, 80 Stat. 841; Pub. L. 90–83, §8, Sept. 11, 1967, 81 Stat. 222.)” (“Sec. 218 - Relation to other laws,” https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm). The provision is current as published in the “United States Code, 2024 Edition,” and the “United States Code, 2023 Edition” carries the identical operative text, confirming this layering rule has not changed between those two editions.
What this article does not answer
This article confirms only that the FLSA itself defers to a stricter state or local minimum wage, workweek, or child-labor standard. It does not say what any particular state or city ordinance actually requires — those figures and rules vary by jurisdiction and change over time. It does not determine which of two specific numbers, a state rate and a federal rate, is “higher” in any individual reader’s pay situation. And it does not address whether a specific employer or job is even covered by a given state law in the first place. Answering any of those questions requires checking the specific state or local statute in question, not just the federal layering rule described here.
Source links
https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2024-title29/html/USCODE-2024-title29-chap8-sec218.htm https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-2023-title29/html/USCODE-2023-title29-chap8-sec218.htm